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Tuesday, 30 December 2014

Nigeria's Vice President and running mate of
President Goodluck Jonathan, Namadi Sambo
and APC Presidential Candidate, Gen
Muhammadu Buhari, have both failed to
present their University Degree certificates to
the Independent National Electoral Commission
as part of documents to be tendered before
the electoral commission by any aspirant
Arc. Namadi Sambo who presented his
nomination forms to INEC on Dec 10th stated in
his form that his BSc and MSc certificates from
his Alma mater, Ahmadu Bello University ABU
got burnt in a fire incident. He however
tendered a "To Whom It May Concern" letter
from authorities of the ABU stating that he
was a student of their school.
The letter in part read
“I certify that the above-named person
having completed an approved course of
study and passed the prescribed
examinations was awarded the Bachelor of
Science (Architecture) with Second Class
Honours (Lower Division) in 1976 by the
Senate of this University. His original
certificate got burnt. Please treat his case
in view of this certification. Thank you.”
On his part, APC Presidential candidate,
General Buhari said he could not tender any of
his academic certificates before INEC because
all his certificates are with the Military board
and not at his disposal. An affidavit sworn by
Gen Buhari rtd at High court in Abuja on
November 24th to this effect reads in part,
"I am the above-named person and
deponent to this affidavit therein. All my
academic qualifications documents as
filled in my presidential form, President
APC/001/2015, are currently with the
Secretary, Military Board as of the time of
presenting this affidavit. The affidavit is
made in good faith and for record
purpose,”.
All political aspirants are expected to tender
their academic certificates while submitting
their nomination forms. Other aspirants
including President Jonathan have tendered
their certificates to the electoral body.

Monday, 29 December 2014

Indonesian official says Australian planes spot
objects in sea in AirAsia search area. All the
latest news here@http://www.clickmoore.Blogspot.com

09.46 In Singapore, Tom Phillips has just been

speaking to AirAsia boss Tony Fernandes.

Tom says:

He looks exhausted after the events of last 36

hours.

Mr Fernandes told me:

It's a horrific experience - I wouldn't

want anyone to go through what I am

going through right now - but we have

to stay strong and help the people that have

been involved in this tragedy.

09.17 In other AirAsia news, an AirAsia Zest

plane with 184 people on board developed a

tyre problem in the central Philippine city of

Tagbilaran, prompting the airline, which is partly

owned by AirAsia Philippines, to cancel the

flight.

The incident comes as rescuers search for a

missing AirAsia plane that disappeared on a

flight from Indonesia to Singapore with 162 on

board.

At least four domestic flights to and from

Tagbilaran were cancelled due to the incident on

Sunday, Civil Aviation Authority of the

Philippines spokesman Eric Apolonio said. The

flight had 178 passengers and six crewmembers.

The Airbus A320 aircraft's tyre was later fixed,

allowing it to resume its flight to the Philippine

capital Monday morning. No reason was given

for the problem.

09.15 This map shows where the Australian

plane spotted floating objects.

The site is near Nangka Island, about 100 miles

southwest of Pangkalan Bun.

08.51 German insurer Allianz said on Monday it

was the lead re-insurer to the AirAsia jet missing

off the Indonesian coast with 162 people on

board, making it the third major airline accident

the company has been involved in this year.

The German company, which has Malaysia

Airlines as a client, was the main reinsurer to

flight MH370 that disappeared over the Indian

Ocean in March, as well as to flight MH17 which

was shot down in July while flying over Ukraine.

"We can confirm that Allianz Global Corporate &

Specialty UK (AGCS) is the lead reinsurer for

AirAsia, for aviation hull and liability insurance,"

an Allianz spokeswoman said in a statement

emailed to Reuters.

Aviation incidents accounted for four of the top

10 major insurance losses not linked to natural

catastrophes in the first eight months of 2014,

putting pressure on aviation claims that are

already rising due to the use of expensive

materials and demanding safety regulation, an

Allianz report said.

Allianz declined to comment on the extent of its

exposure or to identify other insurers with

exposure to the missing Indonesia AirAsia plane,

an Airbus A320-200.

But Reuters calculations show the minimum

payout to cover for this accident could be

around $100 million.

08.48 Here is a roundup of the teams currently

involved in the search for the missing plane:

- Indonesia:

Three warships in area and two others on their

way, 12 search and rescue agency vessels and

scores of small boats. Indonesia has one pinger

locator for finding the plane's underwater

locator beacon.

Two C-130 Hercules aircraft, two Super Puma

helicopters, one Boeing maritime patrol plane,

two CN-235 maritime patrol aircraft.

- Australia:

One AP-3C Orion maritime surveillance plane.

- Singapore:

Two Hercules C-130 aircraft, a frigate and a

missile corvette. Landing ship tank and

submarine support and rescue vessel on

standby.

Singapore has also offered two pinger locators.

- Malaysia:

One Hercules C-130, three ships.

- China:

Beijing has offered to send ships and aircraft.

- United States:

Washington has also offered assistance if

needed.

08.31 Earlier today, Indonesia's search and

rescue agency said that the AirAsia "hypothesis"

is that it "is at the bottom of the sea"

08.12 We're expecting more detail on the objects

soon.

But in the interim, it's worth reading what

former British Airways pilot Alastair

Rosenschein makes of it all.

He argues that he disappearance of Air Asia

flight QZ8501 seems mysterious, but the facts

will eventually emerge.

Missing Air Asia jet will not be a mystery

07.59 The vice president of Indonesia is

expected at Surabaya airport shortly, where our

correspondent Tom Phillips is waiting to hear

what he says. Tony Fernandes, the CEO of Air

Asia, is also there. We will keep you posted on

what they say.

07.54 More detail on the sighting of objects in

the sea.

Jakarta's Air Force base commander Rear

Marshal Dwi Putranto says he was informed

Monday that an Australian Orion aircraft had

detected suspicious objects near Nangka island,

about 100 miles southwest of Pangkalan Bun,

near central Kalimantan, or 700 miles from the

location where the plane lost contact.

Mr Putranto says:

However, we cannot be sure whether it

is part of the missing AirAsia plane.

We are now moving in that direction, which is in

cloudy conditions.

07.53 These are the latest images from the

search control centre.

07.45 We're working to bring you more detail on
the objects spotted by the Australian plane.
But some key points to remember:
• The sea in the search area is not especially
deep - an average of 150ft
• Fishermen have reported seeing a plane crash
at the tiny island of Pulau Nangka, which is not
too far from the plane's last point of contact,
while others saw plane coming down at Pulau
Lung
• The search area is roughly the size of
California
07.40 SURABAYA, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesian
official says Australian planes spot objects in sea
in AirAsia search area.
07.26 Airline operations will go under full
review, as AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes insists
safety is "paramount"
07.06 Malaysia's ministry of transport has just
sent us an update on the search and rescue
operation.
It reads:
The search operations for missing flight
QZ8501 is still ongoing and led by
Indonesian authorities. The Malaysian
government is committed to assist Indonesia in
this operation and have deployed assets to the
area to aid in the search.
The Royal Malaysian Navy vessels, the KD
PAHANG, KD LEKIR and KD LEKIU have been
deployed and will comb the entire span of the
search area. The Royal Malaysian Air Force
(RMAF) aircraft have been assigned and
currently searching the area east of Pulau
Belitung. They will also receive additional
instructions from the Indonesian coordinating
authorities for any further assignments within
the search area.
We are in close contact with the government of
Indonesia and continue to work closely in
finding the missing aircraft. Our thoughts and
prayers are with the passengers, crew and
families of those onboard AirAsia Indonesia
flight QZ8501.
07.01 The missing flight dominates front pages
in the region.
This is a Chinese newspaper, the Sin Chew Daily.
The headline describes the missing AirAsia flight
QZ8501, with 162 people on board.

06.52 A huge search operation has resumed,
involving 12 navy ships, five planes, three
helicopters and a number of warships. It was
suspended on Sunday night due to poor visibility
but resumed this morning.
06.10 The Telegraph's Tom Phillips in Surabaya
has spoken to the sister of Natalina Wuntargo, a
31-year-old who was on the flight, who said her
relative had been heading to Kuala Lumpur for
an end of year break and had planned to return
home to Surabaya on January 4.
"My mother was watching television when she
saw the news," said Natalia, her sister. "She
called me and said: 'The plane lost contact.'"
"I spoke to her one day before she left," added
Andreas, 27, the missing woman's brother. "She
said: 'I'm going on vacation. She was very, very
happy."
Hansen Widjaja, a hotel employee from Jakarta,
said he had four relatives on the plane including
two young children.
"I don't know - it feels like God's will," he said
as he waited for newa at Surabaya airport with
dozens of other relatives. Around him four
elderly women huddled together and wept as
they braced themselves for the worst.
"I don't know what happened - whether it was
the weather maybe, or the operation of the
airplane," added Mr Widjaja, 25. "I don't know."
Even after more than 24 hours without news, he
said he had not given up hope. "We must have
positive thinking while there is no news. Now,
we can't just make assumptions. We cannot
blame anyone right now."
05.35 To put the search operation into context,
the area being trawled is 124,000 sq kilometres
- roughly the size of California.
05.20 The plight of a missing AirAsia jet lost
cannot be equated with Malaysia Airlines Flight
MH370 which vanished without a trace in
March, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott
has just said.
Australia is leading the search for MH370, which
was on a routine flight from Kuala Lumpur to
Beijing when it disappeared off radars on March
8 with 239 people onboard.
"I think it would be a big mistake to equate
what has happened here with MH370," Abbott
told Sydney radio station 2GB. "MH370, as
things stand, is one of the great mysteries of
our time. It doesn't appear that there's any
particular mystery here. It's an aircraft that was
flying a regular route on a regular schedule, it
struck what appears to have been horrific
weather, and it's down. But this is not a mystery
like the MH370 disappearance and it's not an
atrocity like the MH17 shooting down''.

Families of passengers onboard missing QZ8501

wait in Juanda International Airport

05.05 Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia, has been

tweeting his prayers for those 162 passengers:

Keeping positive and staying strong. My heart

bleeds for all the relatives of my crew and our

passangers. Nothing is more important to us.

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes)

December 29, 2014

04.44 Looks as though relatives have been

relayed the news from the press conference:

Looks like they are being briefed on what is

happening. Many in floods of tears, clutching

cloths to their faces #QZ8501

— Tom Phillips (@tomphillipsin) December 29,

2014

However, they haven't been told the specifics.

Tom Phillips says relatives are telling him they

still have no word on what actually happened to

the plane or if wreckage has been found. Most

are getting news from Internet or local TV.

"We have no information," says Natalia, an

Indonesian woman whose 31-year-old sister was

on the plane. She has been sleeping at the hotel

with her eight-year-old son since last night.

Her sister was heading to Kuala Lumpur via

Singapore for a quick end of year holiday. "We

are so, so sad," her sister says.

'She was very, very happy' - brother of one

young woman who was heading off on holiday

on missing flight #QZ8501 pic.twitter.com/

s3dBPkPi5W

— Tom Phillips (@tomphillipsin) December 29,

2014

03.50 Tom Phillips , our correspondent in

Surabaya, has been shown a map by

investigators of the location teams are focusing

on:

Senior aviation official tells me 'we hope we can

hear good news' abt survivors from #QZ8501 .

Focus on area below pic.twitter.com/

MwhIMdEYEa

— Tom Phillips (@tomphillipsin) December 29,

2014

He also spoke to a senior civil aviation chief

based in Surabaya - one of dozens of officials

who have gathered at the airport there, along

with relatives. Asked if there was any chance of

finding survivors he said: "I'm not sure but

there is a possibility. We are still waiting for

information from our search and rescue people.

They are working and we hope we can hear

good news from the site"

03.42 AIrAsia CEO Tony Fernandes is now

speaking. He says the group has carried 220

million passengers in 13 years and has never

suffered any fatalities: “Until today we have

never lost a life," he says. "No airline can

guarantee 100 per cent safety to its

passengers."

03.33 Aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas spoke to

several check captains and believes the pilot of

the QZ8501 encountered difficult weather

conditions but flew too slow in his efforts to

avoid it.

"The QZ8501 was flying too slow, about 100

knots which is about 160 km/h too slow. At that

altitude that's exceedingly dangerous," Mr

Thomas said.

"Pilots believe that the crew, in trying to avoid

the thunderstorm by climbing, somehow have

found themselves flying too slow and thus

induced an aerodynamic stall similar to the

circumstances of the loss of Air France AF447 to

crash in 2009," Mr Thomas told AAP news

agency.

Relatives of missing Air Asia QZ8501 passengers

at the crisis centre of Juanda International

Airport

03.20 The brother of a British man Chi-Man

Choi, who was travelling on the missing jet, has

admitted they are preparing 'for the worst', as

searches began again.

Chi-Wai Choi, hassaid he was comforting his

elderly parents, hoping for positive news but

nevertheless 'preparing them for the worst.'

'It doesn't look good at the moment. I am sure

if there was anything to find then they would

have found it by now.' he told The Sun. 'It is a

very tricky time at the moment. We are just

holding together for my parents.

03.00 Probably not the news families want to
hear, but Mr Soelistyo said Indonesia did not
have "the tools", such as submersible vehicles,
required to retrieve the plane from the seabed,
but that it is reaching out to other countries for
help if necessary.
"Due to the lack of technology that we have, I
have coordinated with our foreign minister so
we will borrow from other countries which have
offered. They are the UK, France and US," he
said.
Our China correspondent Tom Phillips is at the
press conference at Surabaya airport:
Packed outdoor press conf at Surabaya airport
now. Officials say #AirAsia8501 likely at bottom
of sea pic.twitter.com/EU9QvIkyrl
— Tom Phillips (@tomphillipsin) December 29,
2014
02.30 The missing AirAsia plane is likely at the
bottom of the sea, Indonesia's National Search
and Rescue Agency chief had said, striking a
pessimistic tone just a few hours into the search.
"Based on the coordinates given to us and
evaluation that the estimated crash position is in
the sea, the hypothesis is the plane is at the
bottom of the sea," Bambang Soelistyo told a
press conference.
"That's the preliminary suspicion and it can
develop based on the evaluation of the result of
our search."
02.10 Channel News Asia, quoting Indonesian
officials, is reporting that fishermen heard a
crash at the tiny island of Pulau Nangka, which
is not too far from the plane's last point of
contact, while others saw plane coming down at
Pulau Lung.
02.05 David Millward, the Telegraph's former
transport editor, writes:

Wednesday, 24 December 2014

The award was bestowed on the president
today, December 23, by Nigerian actors
under the umbrella of the "Legends of
Nollywood."

President Goodluck Jonathan has been named
the Grand Patron of Nigeria’s film industry,
Nollywood.
The award was bestowed on the president
today, December 23, by Nigerian actors under
the umbrella of the "Legends of Nollywood."
The group was led by actor, Paul Obazele and
in receiving the award, Jonathan stated that
Nollywood has consistently brought glory to the
nation.

Monday, 22 December 2014

The sentence was passed down on
Wednesday, December 17, and the
condemned soldiers, two Corporals, nine
Lance Corporals and 49 Privates, are to die
by firing squad for refusing to fight against
Boko Haram.

Sunday, 21 December 2014

A Second World War Halifax bomber lost in a
raid to sink the Tirpitz has been found largely
intact at the bottom of a fjord near Trondheim

Six university students have used a mini
submarine to find the submerged wreck of a
British bomber lost on a raid to sink the German
battleship Tirpitz.
The Halifax heavy bomber was located, largely
intact, 600ft under water in a Norwegian fjord,
72 years after it crashed on the mission to
destroy one of Hitler’s most feared warships.
The aircraft was only found after a pipeline-
laying crew spotted a mystery object in the fjord
and the discovery was heard of by students at
the marine technology department of a local
university.
Six of the students used a remote-controlled sub
to find the plane. Although they were not able
to find the aircraft’s serial number, it is believed
to be Halifax W7656.
The aircraft was struck by heavy flak and made
a successful crash landing in the water during
the raid on April 28, 1942, to find and sink the
Tirpitz near Trondheim.

The ships acquired by the former warlord
have also been upgraded with new
weaponry, Norwegian newspaper, Dagbladet
reports.

According to reports, former Niger Delta
militant, Government Ekpemupolo , aka
Tompolo, has acquired seven Norwegian
warships.
The ships acquired by the former warlord have
also been upgraded with new weaponry,
Norwegian newspaper, Dagbladet reports.
According to Punch » , Tompolo purchased the
ships and is now in charge of the Global West
Vessel Service, a privately owned contractor for
maritime security for the Nigerian Maritime
Safety Agency.
The seven ships are now part of the company’s
fleet and are being used by the Nigerian
government under contract.
Tompolo has in recent times been accused of
masterminding the abduction of 14 journalists
in Delta State and threatening the life of
popular human rights lawyer, Festus Keyamo .
UPDATE: Norwegian newspaper, Dagbladet
reports that Tompolo bought six warships and
not seven as earlier reported....

Saturday, 20 December 2014

The pace of present African literature is
moving at a high speed , style and tone
sexier and defiant than the great
independence writers ’ generation . Here , the
subjects of taboo are widely explored. The
emerging African Authours of this
generation are not afraid to go further
afield for the literary fodder . Since the birth
of literature in Africa , there have been a
number of African authors from all over
the continent who have done a lot in the
literature industry .
The following are Top 10
African Authors of all time :
1. Chinua Achebe
Chinua Achebe is one of the best African
authors who have contributed a lot in the
field of African literature . He was born in
1930, and schooled at the University of
Ibadan, Nigeria. His first groundbreaking
novel titled ‘ Things Fall Apart ” was
published in 1958 . This novel made Chinua
Achebe very popular and it was then
translated to over 50 languages due to its
high demand . Later , he served as the
professor of David and Marianna Fisher
University as well as a professor of African
Studies at the Brown University in the
Providence, Rhode Island. He died early
2013 at the age of 82 years old , in Boston,
Massachusetts .

2. Wole Soyinka
Wole Soyinka is also one of the great heroes
in the list of top and best African
authors who have won great awards and
honours in the world of literature . He was
born in 1934 in Nigeria and he became the
first African author to be awarded the Nobel
Prize award in literature . Late 1950 s , he
wrote his very first important play titled ‘ A
Dance of the Forests ’ that satirizes a
fledgling nation by highlighting that the
present days in no longer a golden age than
was in the past . In some cases , his writing
focuses on the modern West Africa in a style
of satire, but his belief and serious intent in
the evils fundamentals in the practice of
power are common in his present work .
3. Amos Tutuola

Amos Tutuola was born in 1920, Abeokuta in
Western Nigeria and died in 1997. He was a
self- taught African author who usually
focused his literature on the Yoruba folk
tales. He became popular after gaining the
world fame with his best story ‘ The Palm -
Wine Drunkard ’ that completed in 1946 .
4. Camera Laye
Camera Laye was born in 1928 in
Kouroussa , Upper Guinea and later died in
1980. He was the first African author from
French speaking countries in the continent.
His French novel “ L ’ Enfant noir ” made him
one of the best and important novelists
from the French- speaking countries in
Africa.
5. Dinaw Mengestu
Dinaw Mengestu was also one of the best
African authors who have contributed
greatly in the field of African literature . He
was born in 1978 in Addis Ababa the capital
city of Ethiopia . He moved to the USA
together with his sister and mother two
years after his birth , to reunite with his
father who had previously fled the country
during the Red Terror. He graduated from
Georgetown University . So far , he has
written two novels titled “ The Beautiful
Things that Heaven Bears” which was
established in 2007 and “ How to Read the
Air” established in 2010 . He also recently
received a MacArthur Foundation , usually
known as “ genius grant” .
6. Mariama BA
Maria BA is also an African author born in
1929, Dakar , Senegal . She has been
regarded as one of the best and most
original African authors to come from West
Africa. Her work and life were usually
preoccupied with several issues such as
power, gender relations , and inequality . She
also focused on the ways in which these
issues were affected and framed by Islamic
and African cultural beliefs . She wrote her
first novel titled “ So Long a Letter ” in 1981 .
She died in 1986 , just before publishing her
second novel titled “ Scarlet Song” .
7. Buchi Emecheta
Buchi Emecheta was born in Lagos, the
capital city of Nigeria in 1944 . Her work and
life as an African author set the stage for
the new generation of the west African
female authors. Her fiction was drawn from
her experiences of Diaspora because of the
influence from her educational background.
“ In the Ditch” and Second - Class Citizen that
was established in 1972 and 1974
respectively were Emecheta ’ s heavily and
early autobiographical novels .
8. Bessie Head
Bessie Head was born in the year 1937 ,
Pietermaritzburg and died in 1986. She was
one of the African female authors whose life
and work experiences have been brought
into focus in these days . She became
famous because of her three novels ; ‘ When
Rain Clouds Gather ’ , published in 1968 ,
‘Maru’ also published in 1971 and the third
one ‘ A Question of Power’ launched in 1974 .
9. Ousmane Sembane
In 1923 , Uosmane Sembane was born in
Ziguinchor , a region found in southern
Senegal. He’ s widely acknowledged as the
seminal figure in both African film and
literature . His work was focused centrally on
the cultural practices as well as political
discourses that surround the female body in
the continent of Africa . He died in 2007
after winning a critical acclaim for the
Moolaade in 2004.
10. Ngugi wa Thiong’ o
In 1938 , Ngugi wa Thiong ’ o was born in
Kamiriithu , Kenya. He is one of the best and
most celebrated African authors and
intellectuals . He is also one of the African
authors who have enjoyed both national
and international acclaim as an essayist ,
novelist, playwright , activist and social
commentator. His experience of the Mau
Mau struggle for independence , British
colonialism and the position of Kenya in the
neo - colonial era are some of the issues that
preoccupy much of his thought and writing .
Some of his novels include Weep Not Child
published in 1964 , The River Between in
1965, and A Grain of wheat in 1967.
In conclusion , there are also a number of
other African authors apart from the above -
discussed authors who have done marvelous
work in the African literature industry. There
are also young and vibrant upcoming
authors with thoughts and different writing
touching all aspects of life .

Before African countries and capitals came
to be , Africa was a continent without strict
and well outlined political and economic
boundaries . There was practically no such
thing as heads of States , Governors and
legislators. People were merely living in
villages and hamlets in small clans within
the confines of what could be regarded as
more traditional boundaries . Boundary
disputes were not on a national level as
there was non rather between neighboring
villages . Africa fell victim to the Europeans
dominating powers in the 19 th century . It
was at this time that Europeans started
arriving at the vast , rich but unexplored
black continent to establish dominance ,
authority and in the process , carve out
territories for themselves .

During the so called “ scramble for Africa ” ,
the continent was divided among these
colonial powers among the most favored
were Britain , France and portugal . Other
countries that were fortunate enough to
grab a slice of Africa include : Italy,
Germany, Belgium and Spain . With this, the
entire Africa was split and shared among
these countries except for Ethiopia and
Liberia which are presumed to never have
been colonized ( this fact has been disputed
by some scholars who state that Liberia was
a colony for just about 17 years prior to a
partial independence that was achieved by
the April 4, 1839 declaration of
commonwealth and subsequently , absolute
independence was declared on 26 July 1847
which was eight years later ). With this
division , African countries and capitals were
born.
Today, though African countries are ravaged
by wars , conflicts and poverty mostly as a
result of bad governance and corruption ,
the wildlife , landscape , traditions , African
people and culture have all made it one of
the best travel destinations in the world.

Corruption is quickly becoming one of those
global phenomenon ’s which every country is
struggling with . Spreading faster than an
epidemic, corruption & crime rates have
skyrocketed over the past three decades .
While few countries have been able to curb
their level of corruption , the rates of
corruption have reached new levels in the
countries of Africa . Driven by poverty and
greed, many government officials are
amongst practitioners of corruptions, which
in turn forces the local populace to turn to
crime as their last resort . Recent studies
have pointed out few of the most corrupt
countries in Africa, which is why we should
take a closer look at these countries to
determine their corruption levels and rate
of crime, as per the world corruption rates
statistics.